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[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 44 Introduced in House (IH)]
113th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 44
To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims Review
Commission.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 3, 2013
Ms. Bordallo (for herself, Mr. Andrews, Mrs. Christensen, Mr.
Faleomavaega, Ms. Norton, Mr. Pierluisi, Mr. Rahall, Mr. Sablan, Mr.
Young of Alaska, Mr. Hoyer, and Mr. Michaud) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims Review
Commission.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Guam World War II Loyalty
Recognition Act''.
SEC. 2. RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING AND LOYALTY OF THE RESIDENTS OF
GUAM.
(a) Recognition of the Suffering of the Residents of Guam.--The
United States recognizes that, as described by the Guam War Claims
Review Commission, the residents of Guam, on account of their United
States nationality, suffered unspeakable harm as a result of the
occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces during World
War II, by being subjected to death, rape, severe personal injury,
personal injury, forced labor, forced march, or internment.
(b) Recognition of the Loyalty of the Residents of Guam.--The
United States forever will be grateful to the residents of Guam for
their steadfast loyalty to the United States, as demonstrated by the
countless acts of courage they performed despite the threat of death or
great bodily harm they faced at the hands of the Imperial Japanese
military forces that occupied Guam during World War II.
SEC. 3. GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS FUND.
(a) Establishment of Fund.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall
establish in the Treasury of the United States a special fund (in this
Act referred to as the ``Claims Fund'') for the payment of claims
submitted by compensable Guam victims and survivors of compensable Guam
decedents in accordance with sections 4 and 5.
(b) Composition of Fund.--The Claims Fund established under
subsection (a) shall be composed of amounts deposited into the Claims
Fund under subsection (c).
(c) Payment of Certain Duties, Taxes, and Fees Collected From Guam
Deposited Into Fund.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding section 30 of the Organic
Act of Guam (48 U.S.C. 1421h), the excess of--
(A) any amount of duties, taxes, and fees collected
under such section after fiscal year 2012, over
(B) the amount of duties, taxes, and fees collected
under such section during fiscal year 2012,
shall be deposited into the Claims Fund.
(2) Application.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply after the
date for which the Secretary of the Treasury determines that
all payments required to be made under section 4 have been
made.
(d) Limitation on Payments Made From Fund.--
(1) In general.--No payment may be made in a fiscal year
under section 4 until funds are deposited into the Claims Fund
in such fiscal year under subsection (c).
(2) Amounts.--For each fiscal year in which funds are
deposited into the Claims Fund under subsection (c), the total
amount of payments made in a fiscal year under section 4 may
not exceed the amount of funds available in the Claims Fund for
such fiscal year.
(e) Deductions From Fund for Administrative Expenses.--The
Secretary of the Treasury shall deduct from any amounts deposited into
the Claims Fund an amount equal to 5 per cent of such amounts as
reimbursement to the Federal Government for expenses incurred by the
Foreign Claims Settlement Commission and by the Department of the
Treasury in the administration of this Act. The amounts so deducted
shall be covered into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts.
SEC. 4. PAYMENTS FOR GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS.
(a) Payments for Death, Personal Injury, Forced Labor, Forced
March, and Internment.--After the Secretary of the Treasury receives
the certification from the Chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement
Commission as required under section 4(b)(8), the Secretary of the
Treasury shall make payments to compensable Guam victims and survivors
of a compensable Guam decedents as follows:
(1) Compensable guam victim.--Before making any payments
under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall make payments to
compensable Guam victims as follows:
(A) In the case of a victim who has suffered an
injury described in subsection (c)(2)(A), $15,000.
(B) In the case of a victim who is not described in
subparagraph (A), but who has suffered an injury
described in subsection (c)(2)(B), $12,000.
(C) In the case of a victim who is not described in
subparagraph (A) or (B), but who has suffered an injury
described in subsection (c)(2)(C), $10,000.
(2) Survivors of compensable guam decedents.--In the case
of a compensable Guam decedent, the Secretary shall pay $25,000
for distribution to survivors of the decedent in accordance
with subsection (b). The Secretary shall make payments under
this paragraph only after all payments are made under paragraph
(1).
(b) Distribution of Survivor Payments.--A payment made under
subsection (a)(2) to the survivors of a compensable Guam decedent shall
be distributed as follows:
(1) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is living as of
the date of the enactment of this Act, but who had no living
children as of such date, the payment shall be made to such
spouse.
(2) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is living as of
the date of the enactment of this Act and who had one or more
living children as of such date, 50 percent of the payment
shall be made to the spouse and 50 percent shall be made to
such children, to be divided among such children to the
greatest extent possible into equal shares.
(3) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is not living as
of the date of the enactment of this Act and who had one or
more living children as of such date, the payment shall be made
to such children, to be divided among such children to the
greatest extent possible into equal shares.
(4) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is not living as
of the date of the enactment of this Act and who had no living
children as of such date, but who--
(A) had a parent who is living as of such date, the
payment shall be made to the parent; or
(B) had two parents who are living as of such date,
the payment shall be divided equally between the
parents.
(5) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is not living as
of the date of the enactment of this Act, who had no living
children as of such date, and who had no parents who are living
as of such date, no payment shall be made.
(c) Definitions.--For purposes of this Act:
(1) Compensable guam decedent.--The term ``compensable Guam
decedent'' means an individual determined under section 5 to
have been a resident of Guam who died as a result of the attack
and occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces
during World War II, or incident to the liberation of Guam by
United States military forces, and whose death would have been
compensable under the Guam Meritorious Claims Act of 1945
(Public Law 79-224) if a timely claim had been filed under the
terms of such Act.
(2) Compensable guam victim.--The term ``compensable Guam
victim'' means an individual who is not deceased as of the date
of the enactment of this Act and who is determined under
section 5 to have suffered, as a result of the attack and
occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces during
World War II, or incident to the liberation of Guam by United
States military forces, any of the following:
(A) Rape or severe personal injury (such as loss of
a limb, dismemberment, or paralysis).
(B) Forced labor or a personal injury not under
subparagraph (A) (such as disfigurement, scarring, or
burns).
(C) Forced march, internment, or hiding to evade
internment.
(3) Definitions of severe personal injuries and personal
injuries.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission
shall promulgate regulations to specify the injuries that
constitute a severe personal injury or a personal injury for
purposes of subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, of
paragraph (2).
SEC. 5. ADJUDICATION.
(a) Authority of Foreign Claims Settlement Commission.--
(1) In general.--The Foreign Claims Settlement Commission
shall adjudicate claims and determine the eligibility of
individuals for payments under section 4.
(2) Rules and regulations.--Not later than 180 days after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Chairman of the
Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall publish in the
Federal Register such rules and regulations as may be necessary
to enable the Commission to carry out the functions of the
Commission under this Act.
(b) Claims Submitted for Payments.--
(1) Submittal of claim.--For purposes of subsection (a)(1)
and subject to paragraph (2), the Foreign Claims Settlement
Commission may not determine an individual is eligible for a
payment under section 4 unless the individual submits to the
Commission a claim in such manner and form and containing such
information as the Commission specifies.
(2) Filing period for claims and notice.--
(A) Filing period.--An individual filing a claim
for a payment under section 4 shall file such claim not
later than one year after the date on which the Foreign
Claims Settlement Commission publishes the notice
described in subparagraph (B).
(B) Notice of filing period.--Not later than 180
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall publish a
notice of the deadline for filing a claim described in
subparagraph (A)--
(i) in the Federal Register; and
(ii) in newspaper, radio, and television
media in Guam.
(3) Adjudicatory decisions.--The decision of the Foreign
Claims Settlement Commission on each claim filed under this Act
shall--
(A) be by majority vote;
(B) be in writing;
(C) state the reasons for the approval or denial of
the claim; and
(D) if approved, state the amount of the payment
awarded and the distribution, if any, to be made of the
payment.
(4) Deductions in payment.--The Foreign Claims Settlement
Commission shall deduct, from a payment made to a compensable
Guam victim or survivors of a compensable Guam decedent under
this section, amounts paid to such victim or survivors under
the Guam Meritorious Claims Act of 1945 (Public Law 79-224)
before the date of the enactment of this Act.
(5) Interest.--No interest shall be paid on payments made
by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission under section 4.
(6) Limited compensation for provision of representational
services.--
(A) Limit on compensation.--Any agreement under
which an individual who provided representational
services to an individual who filed a claim for a
payment under this Act that provides for compensation
to the individual who provided such services in an
amount that is more than one percent of the total
amount of such payment shall be unlawful and void.
(B) Penalties.--Whoever demands or receives any
compensation in excess of the amount allowed under
subparagraph (A) shall be fined not more than $5,000 or
imprisoned not more than one year, or both.
(7) Appeals and finality.--Objections and appeals of
decisions of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall be
to the Commission, and upon rehearing, the decision in each
claim shall be final, and not subject to further review by any
court or agency.
(8) Certifications for payment.--After a decision approving
a claim becomes final, the Chairman of the Foreign Claims
Settlement Commission shall certify such decision to the
Secretary of the Treasury for authorization of a payment under
section 4.
(9) Treatment of affidavits.--For purposes of section 4 and
subject to paragraph (2), the Foreign Claims Settlement
Commission shall treat a claim that is accompanied by an
affidavit of an individual that attests to all of the material
facts required for establishing the eligibility of such
individual for payment under such section as establishing a
prima facie case of the eligibility of the individual for such
payment without the need for further documentation, except as
the Commission may otherwise require. Such material facts shall
include, with respect to a claim for a payment made under
section 4(a), a detailed description of the injury or other
circumstance supporting the claim involved, including the level
of payment sought.
(10) Release of related claims.--Acceptance of a payment
under section 4 by an individual for a claim related to a
compensable Guam decedent or a compensable Guam victim shall be
in full satisfaction of all claims related to such decedent or
victim, respectively, arising under the Guam Meritorious Claims
Act of 1945 (Public Law 79-224), the implementing regulations
issued by the United States Navy pursuant to such Act (Public
Law 79-224), or this Act.
SEC. 6. GRANTS PROGRAM TO MEMORIALIZE THE OCCUPATION OF GUAM DURING
WORLD WAR II.
(a) Establishment.--Subject to subsection (b), the Secretary of the
Interior shall establish a grant program under which the Secretary
shall award grants for research, educational, and media activities for
purposes of appropriately illuminating and interpreting the causes and
circumstances of the occupation of Guam during World War II and other
similar occupations during the war that--
(1) memorialize the events surrounding such occupation; or
(2) honor the loyalty of the people of Guam during such
occupation.
(b) Eligibility.--The Secretary of the Interior may not award a
grant under subsection (a) unless the person seeking the grant submits
an application to the Secretary for such grant, in such time, manner,
and form and containing such information as the Secretary specifies.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Guam World War II Claims Payments and Adjudication.--There are
authorized to be appropriated for any fiscal year beginning after the
date of the enactment of this Act, such sums as may be necessary to
enable the Commission and the Treasury Department to pay their
respective administrative expenses incurred in carrying out their
functions under sections 4 and 5. Amounts appropriated under this
section may remain available until expended.
(b) Guam World War II Grants Program.--For purposes of carrying out
section 6, there are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 for each
fiscal year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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